I know we've had many discussions on tyre choice in the past but I need to purchase a new rear tyre very soon and was going to go for a Pirelli Sport Demon 140/80. I hear good reports but recently I've also heard that wear is pretty poor with some only getting 6 or 7k KLM out of these. I'm a medium to hard rider and have just got nearly 15k klm out of my current Avon Azaro radial (NLA).

What are others getting out of their Sport Demon?
Are there any other good choices?

Kaptain...I've been using the Pirelli Demon Sports now for quite some time. Mainly on the recommendation of TWB. BUT I've  been getting less than 10KKm out of each set. I think I'm currently on my third set now and due for replacement (F & R). At Smithy's the other day I had the Yellow Beast in the shed and Smithy had to take it off the centre stand and move it towards the back wall a bit. He remarked how heavy the beast was. He invited me to put his RS on the centre stand and I nearly threw it over the back...it was sooo much lighter than mine. The conclusion for me is the weight issue. Mine is super heavy and it didn't even have the camping gear on it.

Tyres are always an interesting topic of discussion. I've always felt that to test the performance of a tyre, esp. in the wet, you need to be on a track and take it beyond your limits until you fall off. Then you've got an idea how well they hang on. But I'm not going to do that and hope that in the event that if ever the situation arises where you need to crank it over well beyond your comfort zone the tyres will still hang on. (Being older and supposedly wiser, I try to avoid these "white Knuckle" moments)

My two bobs worth.

Has anyone tried the 150/70/17 on the Y spoke rims? I'm sure they would work ok, then you could run T30 radials front and rear. It may be  what I'll try next.

smithy wrote:Has anyone tried the 150/70/17 on the Y spoke rims? I'm sure they would work ok, then you could run T30 radials front and rear. It may be  what I'll try next.

They will touch the swinging arm so I am told.

I was told too that they will touch the swinging arm.....but I measured the space between the 140/80 and the swinging arm and it tells me the 150 will fit. I haven't ventured to try it but next time out I may well do. What I don't know is whether it would be a good idea on the Y spoke wheel to do it.

But I still like the BT45 and it seems to provide confidence for winter riding in cold and wet. I never feel tyres are an issue.

I believe that the Conti Classic Trail Attack comes in 140/80/17...

I've measured also and I think a 150 tyre would clear the swingarm and mufler but I think the real issue is the rim size. All the tyre/rim tables I've seen say the same as the one I've posted below. If you got it to fit I think the profile would change too much anyway.
There's some interesting reading here....
https://www.k100-forum.com/t1373p15-tyres

So back to the original question... what sort of milage are people getting out of their Sport Demons?

Brad-Man wrote:I believe that the Conti Classic Trail Attack comes in 140/80/17...

The original and the newest Metzeler Tourances (is it the Next?) also come in this. I am really tempted, people seem to like both but the newer tyre also looks to be an almost pure road tyre. They also last aaaages

Kaptain Holister wrote:

So back to the original question... what sort of milage are people getting out of their Sport Demons?

I got 16k kms out of the first set, I had to change a rear out of synch but the current front is totaly shagged (scalloped and cambered) with 17k kms on it. I think that the fact I did 2 trips to France on it helped the camber wear considerably and added to it's longeivity. At 4k miles (6,450 kms) the rear is just starting to wear a small bit square.

As regards riding style I can't honestly say but I'm not too aggressive in the corners unless I'm following Biker boy's ducati through the French perigord! I don't hang about at home either, I tend to allow for a +10% speedo error margin against the national speed targets ...if you get my drift 

I seem to recall some spirited riding the day we met Indian036 in Dublin.......no Ducatis that day but there seemed to be a well matched pair.....

He he I don't see myself having tyres last that long, I got new tyres before France last year, then new ones in the spring this year.......and last week new ones again. All BT45 and I know they are doing good mileage. Just a lot of use.

Sat in car today and find its got less than 1,000 miles on it since this time last year.!

smithy wrote:Has anyone tried the 150/70/17 on the Y spoke rims? I'm sure they would work ok, then you could run T30 radials front and rear. It may be  what I'll try next.

I'm sure I read a post some time ago from japeuntes who said he'd done just that but I couldn't be sure if it was with a Y-spoke wheel or not. I can't find the post now.

I just wonder if there would be any safety concerns with a 150/70 on a 2.75in rim?

Also I think the multi-radius profile would change considerably and would guess that it would tip in much quicker. I've noticed that with wider tyres you can lean the bike a bit further before you start scraping something.

Something I've just realised is that the Pirelli Sport Demon is not a dual compound tyre which may be why some are finding they're wearing out quicker.

88KE wrote:

Kaptain Holister wrote:

So back to the original question... what sort of milage are people getting out of their Sport Demons?

I got 16k kms out of the first set, I had to change a rear out of synch but the current front is totaly shagged (scalloped and cambered) with 17k kms on it. I think that the fact I did 2 trips to France on it helped the camber wear considerably and added to it's longeivity. At 4k miles (6,450 kms) the rear is just starting to wear a small bit square.

As regards riding style I can't honestly say but I'm not too aggressive in the corners unless I'm following Biker boy's ducati through the French perigord! I don't hang about at home either, I tend to allow for a +10% speedo error margin against the national speed targets ...if you get my drift 

i'm the same Will ..though the bike travels much better around the 5 k mark ..I have to pull the throttle back  when I start noticing it sitting above the  110 mark  (known as the "country 100 " around here  ) whilst on the lt style bevel box  that's quite acceptable ..but the new - old rs bevel box ....hmm have to rethink the whole thing .

if I can add something ...the big rear wheel and 160 rear tyre was square a lot sooner than the conventional crossply ...im a guessing that the riding position whilst on the rt - lt versions creates a different wear pattern than the rs equipped style ...for the lt-rt situation one finds them selves using a whole lot of body english with counter steering- weight control being the norm and maintaining a more upright stance and wider handle bars  ...whilst on the rs a whole different ball game is implied ...with what I noticed on smithys rs being a whole new lean in with the bike effect .(knee down stuff came to mind real quick ) and I guess all bikes fitted with shorter handlebars .

still regularly getting over 20,000 k s out of a front and well over 12,000 k (closer to 15,000 ) out of a rear ...what I do like, is the lack of defined centre line on the rear ...im thinking more rubber less air right in that spot ..although the aggressive pattern pumps the water out pretty well , when rains around .

yes there is some scalloping of the front with the good brakes available ..but hey ...im guessing that there are a lot of folks that use far more braking than I seem to ...perhaps trying to match engine revs and braking effect extends my perceived longevity  .(note ..get rid of that dang tps  shutoff function and you too might notice a heap of difference when weight transfer ceases to be a major factor on throttle off  )

nigel has followed me for some distance recently ..over normal road and aggressive twistys ..and this is the way I ride most of the time ...just the way I am mate .  unfortunately cant judge how he rides behind ?  sorry bout that . but seems that he was right up my clacker in most situations  around corners ...grin

just what I see and feel
hope its of some value to someone

Hope i didn't freak you out by getting too close Charlie but I don't use my brakes too much into corners prefering to use engine braking and that's why I like the TPS engaged.
Riding style is a personal thing and very subjective. Generally I travel between the speed limit and +10%. Corners don't generally slow me down but if there are speed advisory signs I'll try to double that within the speed limit and conditions at the time. 

I'm sitting in the customer lounge right now at Balmain Motorcycles in Sydney waiting for my new Sport Demon.
Adiós Avon Azaro... it was fun while it lasted

Real happy with a Pirelli Scorpion Trail 140/80-17 radial on the rear of my 8v at the moment.  Way too early to comment on mileage.

I wouldnt be tempted by a 150/70, the rim is way too narrow by any recommendations and I doubt it would give better turn in.  

I had a VTR1000F way back, the original rear was a 180/55, I improved the turn in at Eastern Creek by fitting a 170/60 in its place made it a much better ride.  Different horse though.

Al

Back in late November last year I fitted the Pirelli Sport Demon 140/80 on the rear. Last week I fitted a secondhand BT45 (about 10%worn) I bought for $80 off Gummy. Managed to get 13,800km out of that rear Demon over the past 5 months. A good result I felt. I have to admit that the last 500km or so, the tread wear has been over the limit and I limped into Sydney last week with fairly smooth front and rear tyres, a spattering of rain and a loaded bike.

Timing was perfect as the front, a BT-023 was over the tread limit as well. I fitted that tyre back in December 2014 and up to last week it had carried me .... 28,400km . That tyre performed very well particularly while it was paired with my previous rear, an Avon AV45. Unfortunately, both of those radials are no longer available.

The BT-023 had very minimal scolloping and was well chamfered on the sides, testament to a few spirited rides up Thunderbolt's Way, a game of chase around Northern Tablelands last November and a good fang around Mount Kosciuszko back in February. It always felt sure-footed in the rain, stopped extremely well and the only time both the BT023 or the rear Demon lost grip was when I hit an oil patch and went sideways for 10 or 15cm. Fortunately for me, they both recovered very quickly and picked up where they left off after a few choice words from me.

So now I find myself with odd tyres again. The BT023 and AV45 were a proven match made in heaven, but I have no idea if the front Demon and rear BT45 will work together. So far this week, just a bit of getting about around Sydney CBD and a 5 hour spin down the coast and back with my son. All seems pretty good so far. In a couple of weeks I'll be taking a detour up the Oxley Highway. We'll see how they perform together around a few twisties.

When the BT45 wears out, I'll replace it with another Demon.

40psi in the rear and 37 in the front
110/80 front
140/80 rear

Cheers

Managed to get a bargain tyre off Fleabay a Dunlop 707 ...imagine my surprise when i noticed it was a front only tyre and yet was the exact right size for a K100 rear.

So i did some googling and discovered that running it backwards as a rear tyre is an appropriate act....mmmm..was not convinced but thought lets give it a go..wack a Harley / cruiser front tyre onto a "K" rear wheel...I have had no issue even in torrential downpours and warm dry roads at much higher speeds.

Not saying this is the way to go but trial and error is a good way to see if those wide radials are going to be any good....and I have heard even a slight offset such as a late model wheel tyre combo on an early model K is not all that horrible either....
Necessity is the mother of invention.

Cheers JK

Holister wrote:

smithy wrote:Has anyone tried the 150/70/17 on the Y spoke rims? I'm sure they would work ok, then you could run T30 radials front and rear. It may be  what I'll try next.

I'm sure I read a post some time ago from japeuntes who said he'd done just that but I couldn't be sure if it was with a Y-spoke wheel or not. I can't find the post now.

I just wonder if there would be any safety concerns with a 150/70 on a 2.75in rim?

Also I think the multi-radius profile would change considerably and would guess that it would tip in much quicker. I've noticed that with wider tyres you can lean the bike a bit further before you start scraping something.

Something I've just realised is that the Pirelli Sport Demon is not a dual compound tyre which may be why some are finding they're wearing out quicker.

Really Ibought my set  because the shop told me they were! does explain the current wear tho.

Pirelli Sport Demons have a variable profile design, but where ever did a motorcycle shop get the idea that a bias ply tyre would be dual compound? Some travelling rep, I'll bet!

Bridgestone BT 45's are dual compound bias belted as are Michelin Pilot. https://www.bridgestone.co.uk/motorcycle-tyres/battlax/bt-45/https://www.michelin.com.au/motorbike/tyres/pilot-road-2
Regards Martin.

I'll give you the B'stone BT45 as a dual compound bias ply and raise you one for the Michelin Pilot Road 2 which is a radial, always has been.

I should have put Pilot Activ. I was in a hurry.
Regards Martin.